Battles Within Borders: The Modern Civil Wars Quiz

For a lot of Westerners, civil war is a thing of sepia-toned documentaries. But there are many ongoing conflicts in the world. Test your knowledge of a few of them here — and maybe learn a little about the story behind the headlines.

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Question 1 of 30

Some modern civil wars have been going for years. Name one ongoing civil war from the middle of the 20th century.

Israeli-Palestinian conflict

The Israelis and Palestinians have been in conflict for well over 50 years.

Falklands war

the Vietnam war

Question 2 of 30

South Sudan's civil war is being fought by what ethnic groups?

the Dinka and the Tutsi

the Dinka and the Nuer

Violence broke out in 2013 between the Dinka and the Nuer.

the Nuer and the Hutu

Question 3 of 30

What caused the political upheaval and war in South Sudan?

food shortage

The president of Sudan fired his vice president.

The Dinka sided with President Salva Kiir, while the Nuer supported Vice President Riek Machar.

religious riots

Question 4 of 30

Since 2013, how many people are estimated to have been killed in the civil war?

10,000

1,000

over 50,000

The conflict, in its third year, has been bloody, with more than 50,000 casualties.

Question 5 of 30

What is another adverse effect of the violence in South Sudan?

The land has been burned and destroyed.

Farmers cannot plant crops.

With the lack of crops, a terrible food shortage has occurred.

a low birth rate

Question 6 of 30

In July 2014, the United Nations warned that the food shortage could have what effect in South Sudan?

Four million people could be impacted.

Fifty thousand children could die of hunger.

both

They declared the food shortage the worst in the world, with both of these statements as possibilities.

Question 7 of 30

How many people have been displaced in the South Sudanese conflict?

70,000

1.6 million

A staggering number of people — 1.6 million — have been affected.

500,000

Question 8 of 30

Yemen is also facing an ongoing civil war. What group is leading the insurgency?

Houthis

Houthis are part of a religious sect.

Sunnis

Christians

Question 9 of 30

What branch are the Houthis part of?

Sunni Islam

Shiite Islam

They are Zaidi Shiite, a sect of the branch of Shiite Islam.

neither

Question 10 of 30

What are Yemeni Houthis officially referred to as?

Zaidis

IS

Ansar Allah

Ansar Allah means Partisans of God, and the sect makes up roughly a third of the Yemeni population.

Question 11 of 30

Who did the Houthi rebels force out of office in early 2015?

the president

President Abed Rabbo Mansour Hadi had to flee the capitol after rebel Houthi forces descended.

the ayatollah

the imam

Question 12 of 30

Hadi is now …

back in office

He rescinded his resignation in fall 2015 and went back to Yemen.

living in Saudi Arabia

missing

Question 13 of 30

The political chaos has resulted in …

a growing Islamic State (IS) group presence

a growing al-Qaida in the Arabian Peninsula (AQAP) presence

both

IS and AQAP have been able to build robust operation networks in unstable Yemen.

Question 14 of 30

The war in Yemen has left how many people displaced?

200,000

700,000

1.3 million

Along with terrorist threats and food insecurity, more than a million Yemenis have also been displaced by the conflicts.

Question 15 of 30

You might be familiar with the ongoing conflicts in Afghanistan, but do you know what group is attempting an insurgency?

the Taliban

The Afghan Taliban were driven out of the country but are still waging battle.

al-Qaida

IS

Question 16 of 30

Where are the Taliban now?

Pakistan

Afghanistan

both

The Taliban are in Pakistan and Afghanistan. They control more Afghan territory now than any time since the 2001 U.S.-led invasion.

Question 17 of 30

When did the Syrian civil war begin?

2014

2000

2011

The Syrian conflict began as part of the Arab Spring in 2011.

Question 18 of 30

What was the focus of the initial Syrian Arab Spring protests?

President Bashar Assad's regime

President Assad was extremely unpopular with some Syrians.

women's rights

education

Question 19 of 30

Who joined forces with the Syrian government against rebels?

Russia

Iran

both

Both countries joined forces with the government, along with Hezbollah and the Lebanese Shiite Muslim party.

Question 20 of 30

Who has been able to operate in a wide swath of Syrian territory?

al-Qaida

IS

IS has been able to take control or operate in much of Syria.

Libya

Question 21 of 30

How many people are now registered as Syrian refugees?

2.3 million

3 million

4.8 million

A huge number of people have fled the country. There are 4.8 million people registered as refugees.

Question 22 of 30

What proportion of the population of Syria has been either fled or internally displaced by fighting?

a quarter of the population

half the population

About half of Syria's prewar population has been forced from their homes.

15 percent of the population

Question 23 of 30

Where have most of the refugees gone?

Turkey

Nearby Turkey has taken in 2 million refugees.

Germany

Greece

Question 24 of 30

How many IS fighters are estimated to be in Syria?

20,000-31,500

IS has roughly 25,000 foreign fighters, most of whom are in Syria.

5,000-10,000

400,000

Question 25 of 30

Libya has two different groups that claim to be what?

the leading armies

the ruling government

They claim to be the ruling government. And hold on, because it gets more complicated.

the president's cabinet

Question 26 of 30

The General National Congress (GNC) in Libya was voted out of power but did what instead?

formed its own government in Tripoli, Libya

While the government was based in Tobruk, Libya, the GNC decided to transfer and gain power from Tripoli.

refused to leave

resigned first

Question 27 of 30

The rival Libyan government is called what?

House of Representatives

The House of Representative government is based in Tobruk.

Congress

Libyan Freedom Party

Question 28 of 30

The Libyan "Operation Dignity" called for …

dissolving the GNC

fighting Islamists

both

Gen. Khalifa Haftar, a former Gadhafi loyalist, leads the charge.

Question 29 of 30

To counter Operation Dignity, opponents formed a group called ...

Libya Unite

Libya Dawn

Some Islamists and militias united in Libya Dawn.

Libya Home

Question 30 of 30

How many Libyan people have been internally displaced in the fighting and political chaos?

about 10,000

about 435,000

About 435,000 people have been internally displaced. Keep in mind that scores of rebel and militia groups, including IS and Ansar al-Sharia, have also provoked turmoil and disorder in the country.